Who is a Christian?

Definitions as used by the earliest
Christians, secular sources, and this website

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Who is a Christian, according to:

The primitive Christian movement: circa 30 CE:

Before the religious conversion of Saul/Paul, the only Christian group seems to have been the Jewish Christians in Palestine. It was formed by the followers of Jesus and was led by James, who was referred to as the brother of Jesus. The Jewish Christians regarded themselves as a Jewish reform group. They attended and supplied animal sacrifices at the Temple, celebrated the Jewish seasonal festivals, practiced circumcision of their male children, and followed the strict dietary and behavioral laws in the Hebrew Scriptures. They regarded Jesus as a prophet anointed by God, and not in any way divine. Beliefs such as the virgin birth and Trinity, were unknown to them. Church organizations, including priests, bishops, formal creeds, etc were not part of their practice; these developments only appeared in Christianity decades or centuries in their future.

Later in the 4th decade of the first century CE, when Paul returned from his three year hiatus, probably in Syria, he introduced his belief system -- Pauline Christianity -- in competition to Jewish Christianity. In 70 CE, the Roman Army destroyed Jerusalem and killed most of the Jewish Christians. The survivors scattered. This left Pauline Christianity largely free to evolve into the Catholic Church.

The earliest creed of the later Pauline Christian movement appears to have been: "Jesus is Lord." The expression is found throughout the Christian Scriptures (New Testament) and on the walls of ancient buildings ₁ "Anyone who made this declaration at their baptism was regarded as a Christian." ₂ That was a very inclusive definition of "Christian" then, and remains so today, because of the wide range of meanings given to "Lord." It could mean God; it could mean spiritual leader.

Millennial Information Exchange:

The Millennial Information Exchange, is an "experimental project designed to create a mechanism for dialogue" on end-time matters. They welcome input from individuals who are academic humanists, Christian, secular, multi-dimensional, Gaian, or traditional/non-Christian. They define "Christianity" as follows: 

"...any and all conceptions generally considered to be based on the teachings of Christ as embodied in the New Testament of the Bible. These beliefs are, of course, in no way incompatible with some multi-dimensional and Gaian ones." 

[They further define Gaian beliefs as referring "to any and all conceptions of the Earth as a single living organism of which humans are part, and, in particular, those which regard this Earth organism as sacred, holy, or divine."] Included in their concept of Christianity would be a person who rejected the beliefs that Jesus was the Messiah, or that he is the Son of God, or that he underwent a bodily resurrection after his death. However, this group feels that Jesus' teaching about God are not compatible with the belief that the Earth itself is divine. 

Government censuses and public opinion polls:

"...who said they have made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ that is still important in their life today and who then indicated they believe that when they die they will go to Heaven because they had confessed their sins and had accepted Jesus Christ as their savior."

They have determined that about 35 to 40% of the U.S. population is Christian, in this sense of the term. ₃ They often report data from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the largest Mormon denomination, separately as a non-Christian group.

"From 1972 to 1993, it found that Protestants constituted 63 percent of the national population. But the total declined to 52 percent in 2002." ₄ The survey expected that Protestants will reach minority status between 2004 and 2006. "Respondents were defined as Protestant if they said they were members of a Protestant denomination, such as Episcopal Church or Southern Baptist Convention. The category included members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and members of independent Protestant churches." However, the data may be deceiving. Some Protestant subjects simply reported themselves as "Christians" and were not counted as Protestants. ₅

Other definitions:

This web site:

We accept as Christian any individual or group who devoutly, thoughtfully, seriously, and prayerfully regards themselves to be Christian. Included are: the Roman Catholic church; the Eastern Orthodox churches, conservative, mainline, and liberal/progressive Christian faith groups; The church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons); Jehovah's Witnesses and a thousand or so other religious organizations who view themselves as Christian.

This is a very inclusive view of Christianity. It is definitely not shared by many conservative and mainline Christians. For example, the United Methodist Church (UMC), Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and the Southern Baptist Convention all consider The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to be non-Christian. At their 2000-MAY General Assembly, the UMC approved a resolution which stated that the LDS is non-Christian because it holds "some radically differing doctrine on such matters of belief as the nature and being of God; the nature, origin, and purpose of Jesus Christ; and the nature and way of salvation." 

See also lists of definitions used by some faith groups, and the Apostles' Creed, one philosopher, dictionaries, and Google.

References used:

The following information sources were used to prepare and update the above essay. The hyperlinks are not necessarily still active today.

1. See the Christian Scriptures: Romans 10:9; 1 Corinthians. 12:3; 2 Corinthians. 4:5; Philippians 2:11.
2. M.J. Partridge, "The Apostle's Creed: A short introduction to the Christian faith." at: http://www.ev90481.dial.pipex.com/apostle.htm 
3. Barna Research's web site is at: http://www.barna.org/cgi-bin/Home.asp
4. "Study finds number of Protestants is falling," Houston Chronicle, 2004-JUL-21. Posted on the Free Republic bulletin board at: http://www.freerepublic.com/
5. "Poll: Protestant majority in U.S. eroding. Dropped from 63 percent to 52 percent in a decade," The Associated Press, 2004-JUL-20, at: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/
6. Mark M. Mattison, "What is a Christian," True Grace Ministries,* at: http://www.auburn.edu/
7. Paul of Tarsus, "Romans 10:9," from the Christian Scriptures (New Testament), circa 55 CE. King James version.
8. "THIS Is Christianity," eMediaWire™, 2004-JUL-13, at: http://www.emediawire.com/e

Copyright © 2000 to 2007 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Originally written: 2000-MAR-19
Latest update: 2007-DEC-20
Author: B.A. Robinson